A lot of the posts recently have voiced how disappointed
they are with the process we went through thus far. Although I feel the same
way that the process could be improved, I want to look to the future and the
last few weeks of class.
I am looking forward to group presentations this week the
most. Like everyone else, I have my concerns about all of our finalists. I feel
like we rushed the process and may have chosen prematurely before we had all of
the facts like Jason said in his post. I hate to admit it, but I did have some
questions and reservations about the Rescue Mission even though I volunteered
to be their liaison. But all of my questions were answered when I went on the
site visit. I feel like as a class, we only learned so much from the
presentations from the organizations in class. Many of us may have left class
with unanswered questions and unaddressed concerns. I think the site visit went
so well because we were not limited to 20 minutes like we were in class and we
could be immersed in the organization itself. It is obviously much different to
be somewhere physically as opposed to pictures in a presentation. At our site
visit, I got to learn how the Thrifty Shopper worked and most importantly, how
our grant could make a difference.
I still have questions and concerns about our other four
finalists, but I hope that they will be answered in this weeks finalist
presentations. I think that we will all get a better idea about how our grant
could make a difference. I know that many of us have also been questioning how
successful these organizations are and if they are truly making a difference. I
am hoping that these questions will be addressed as well this week, as we
should not give to an organization that we feel isn’t worthy of a donation
regardless of what their request is. We must be confident in their mission and
how they are achieving it before anything. I just wish we had more time to
determine if our finalists were worthy of a grant before we had to pick them.
I just want us to make the biggest difference that we are
capable of with the $10,000 we were given. I am looking forward to the award
ceremony where we give the money away during finals week. I am sure it will be
so fulfilling to see the joy on the faces of the organization representatives.
I think after all of the arguing is over, it will all be well worth it. I may
be an optimist, but I believe we will all be happy in the end knowing that the
money went to a worthy cause to help people who are in much greater need than
we are. It will also be fulfilling knowing that we made a difference in our
community, which I am sure is a core value for many of you, including myself.
What are you looking forward to?
Hi Eddie,
ReplyDeleteI am also looking forward to the award ceremony, but above all, I am looking forward to the reflection period after the class is over. It sounds odd, but I think, I won't truly appreciate this class until after the whole ordeal is done. I'd love to do a follow up visit or something along those lines, in order to keep tabs on the impact our money made. Like some other students, I only really have reservations about Family Planning, but overall I think each org deserves that money. I look forward to the thank you cards and or emails that will be sent our way.
I also look forward on how we, as a class, can improve the process. We all keep complaining about what we don't like about the process, but none of us (I think), including myself, have offered a solution or a way to fix what we see wrong. For example, I dislike how rushed our decision felt and the dissonance between an on paper applications and a site visit. Someone in class mentioned in class, maybe Jason, that our site visit should of happened in the beginning of the semester, and I agree. I'm not sure how pragmatic that would be, but I'm sure we can figure out a way to go to as many places as possible... maybe break up into smaller groups of 2 or 3 and have 7 minute presentations, instead of groups of 4 or 5 and 10 minute presentations. I really hope, that as a class, we come up with solutions to issues we had with the process. However, in the meantime, let us all look forward in deliberating together and giving away this money in the best way possible.
-Stephanie
Hi Eddie,
ReplyDeleteThanks for this post! Now that we're getting down to the truly gritty, hands on part of choosing which organization to fund, I've noticed how different the atmosphere in our class has become. We quickly went from excited to uncertain, and your thoughts incited just the kind of positive thinking that I needed.
Like Stephanie, I'm really looking forward to the "aftermath" of our decision. Obviously, officially picking the organizations we fund will be exciting, but things have been getting a bit tense in class and I'm kind of ready for the collective exhale that I hope will accompany our choice. With the way I'm feeling, I almost wish that we could have a second try with the same process, now that we know what worked and what didn't. Regardless, the weeks to come will surely be eventful, and I hope as a class we can come together both during the final decision and the reflective period afterward.
Eddie,
ReplyDeleteAfter all we have suffered through, I think it is good to be positive. I think a lot of us are losing track about WHY we are here. I feel that our comments have become pointed rather than inquisitive. I feel our answers have become defensive rather than informative. I think we've also haven't taken the time to listen. Don't get me wrong, I am excited about the end and where we decide to give our money. But "passively" fighting with each other without actually listening to the organizations, to each other, or even to Professor Campbell. During the Rescue Mission group (mine) I did hear someone point to something said in a blog post that really was a misunderstanding from the bloggers point of view. The "drop in the bucket" comment was in response to something Mike Ross had said to our group in terms of how far our money can go. If our money was suppose to go straight to the Rescue Mission, it would be a "drop in the bucket" and this is true. But that is not what the Rescue Mission is asking for us. They are asking for a potential investment that can go farther than $3000. And this is something that we have to consider for every organization. I am begging everyone to take the time to listen so there aren't any lingering bad feelings.
Eddie - What is so interesting is that everyone focused on the Thrifty Store side of the Rescue Mission and not even one person asked a question about the programmatic function of the Rescue Mission. Behind the scene some of the students expressed concern over whether the Rescue Mission required its beneficiaries to attend Christian services but overall everyone focused on the operational efficiencies of their retail operations and nobody asked about the results of their outcome.
ReplyDeleteI thought that my honesty and experience would be of benefit to the class and instead its seems to be a hinderance.
Interesting post Eddie.
ReplyDeleteI personally do not know if we could ever really know if we did make the largest impact possible with the money. There was a huge pool of organizations that we picked and chose from, and I definitely feel like we could have overlooked some or we are missing bits of information about our finalist. I admire that you are set of giving your money in the most efficient fashion, and I am definitely on your side.
I would say that I am mostly looking forward to coming back to school next year knowing of the existence of these organizations, their work, their credibility, and relevance, and getting involved. This class really helped me develop a better understanding of the local community and I definitely found organizations that resonated with me or that I just felt like I could help in one way or another. I am definitely thinking of getting seriously involved with one of the organizations and maybe doing small projects for others. I am also very much looking forward to checking in with this year's beneficiaries next year to see how they've evolved.
This has been a very tedious, and at times frustrating, process however I feel like i've learned a great deal and am just seeing how rewarding this process will be in a few weeks.
Eddie,
ReplyDeleteThank you for your calm and rational blog post. I have to say, I read this blog post before class on Tuesday and after rereading it now, I feel slightly bitter about the optimism I had just a few short days ago. I am the first to admit that I am a very opinionated person, and one who chooses to speak up about it. But I am very willing to listen to others’ arguments and should they provide compelling information, I will reconsider my stance. After class on Tuesday, I felt as if continuing to “argue” about the organizations just wasn’t worth it anymore. I am the liaison for Family Planning – I was assigned this position. I did not choose Family Planning. With complete transparency, I am not totally invested in the organization, and I will probably not vote for them to receive grant money. My “arguing” in class was more of an attempt to present facts that I believed represented the good work Family Planning does, rather than starting a fight or “winning.” Again, when I asked the Rescue Mission group questions and voiced my concerns, I’m just trying to make sure I don’t misunderstand where the money is going and what it is that the organization does. I was almost convinced on Rescue Mission after the finalist presentation, but after doing more research on my own, I decided I was correct in my initial opinion.
I want to stress to everyone that this is a college class. Most of us are under 21 years old, with little to no job experience. This is going to sound ridiculous, but I almost feel like this class has fallen to a rash of bullying. Tentatively, I feel like the old playground retort “pick on someone your own size” is applicable here. Yes, I don’t have years of experience in the financial field, and hardly any with nonprofits before this class. Neither do most people in the class – like I said, we’re under 21. We’re college students – that’s the point. We’re here to learn, not to be told that we’re uninformed or that we are putting “Bull!” on our presentations for the class (which believe me, we worked hard on). All I really can say is that I am disappointed and disheartened. Usually I look forward to coming to class and engaging in debate and learning more about organizations that I would like to believe are all good-hearted. Now I’m dreading class today, and I really doubt I will attempt to ask any more questions or even speak at all, simply for fear of being unnecessarily attacked for not knowing more than a 19-year-old with minimal job experience should. I urge Professor Campbell to address this issue in class today, as I know there are other members of the class who feel the same way (I was approached by several people with their support both during and after Tuesday’s class). People in the class might take a step back and try to decide if their work is helping or hurting their organization simply by their hypocrisy and condescension.
Amanda,
DeleteI appreciate your transparency as the liaison for Family Planning. Some people need to realize that although you are the liaison, you are not necessarily trying to “win” as a group. The reason some of us became liaisons was to volunteer outside of class or just because we were interested in a particular organization. Sometimes, as in your case, you learn after all of your research that you don’t think that the organization should receive funding. This is not supposed to be seen as your group “losing”, rather that you learned from your experience. Not everyone can receive the grant, that’s a given. However, I am sure that you learned things as liaison, which will help you in the grant making process along with necessary people skills.
I also want to thank you for asking questions about the Rescue Mission in class on Tuesday. I want you and everyone else to know exactly what the money is going towards, as this is the whole point of our presentations. I would have loved to stand up there for however long until everyone in the class knew exactly what the money was going to, why it was necessary, and the sustainable impact that it would make. I wish we had time for this for not only the Rescue Mission but also every other finalist. You could argue that we again did not have enough time for presentations to fully understand everything we need to know to make an impactful decision.
Lastly, I am sorry that you have been discouraged from participating in class today. And I am certain that you are not the only one that feels this way. I’m just here to learn about the grant making process with all of you guys, and I have learned a lot, whether it was what to do or what not to do. I’m hoping the rest of the classes go smoothly and that we all feel like we made a difference in the end. But I agree that the attacking needs to stop. There is no need to criticize the presenters about an organization. We are only there to talk about what we learned. Just because you don’t like an organization doesn’t mean you have to call the presenters out on “bull”.
If you or anyone else has questions about the Rescue Mission, please ask me questions. I would be more than happy to clarify anything so you can make an informed and meaningful decision.
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